


Back in Black

by misura



Category: The Locked Tomb Trilogy | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir
Genre: F/F, Future Fic, G + A equals Harrow's ideal gf, Podfic Available, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Yuletide Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:15:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28106889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misura/pseuds/misura
Summary: "Gideon," Harrow said. "I ... ""You think I look hot in this body, and you want to apologize for every nasty thing you ever said or did to me, by preference by offering me whatever slightly demeaning and/or kinky sexual favors I desire?"
Relationships: Gideon Nav/Harrowhark Nonagesimus
Comments: 16
Kudos: 63
Collections: Yuletide 2020





	Back in Black

**Author's Note:**

  * For [argentconflagration](https://archiveofourown.org/users/argentconflagration/gifts).



"Griddle?" Harrow asked, looking so nervous that Gideon wanted to start fidgeting.

"All here," she said, which was not, strictly speaking, true. What was true was that Alecto seemed to have left the building, as planned.

Unfortunately, the building seemed to be in need of some serious repairs, or at least a bunch of squats. Combined with a ton more exercise, Gideon figured that she might be as good as new in, say, twenty years or so. Nineteen-and-a-half, if she pushed it and maybe asked Camilla for tips.

Harrow sighed and said, "It worked, then," her tone almost but not quite back to her usual self.

"You doubted?" This whole reincarnation thing wasn't working out as smoothly as Gideon had hoped. "You risked my very soul on something you weren't even sure was going to work? Wow. I'm ... totally not surprised. Once a psycho bitch, always a psycho bitch, that's my motto."

"Your middle name, surely," Harrow said, which Gideon admitted was sort of decent.

Gideon tried to draw the sword Alecto or Harrow had kindly left her. "God. You couldn't have found someone with more than three muscles?"

"I thought you'd like a challenge," Harrow said, unmoved. On a scale of one to ten, Harrow's biceps would still score a minus nine, but she'd improved.

Right now, if it came to pure strength, Harrow could probably take her. Gideon decided that this was a rather horrible thought and one she wasn't going to dwell on, if only because someone might be listening in. Plus, if she was honest, the idea of Harrow being able to overpower her with brute strength was kind of a turn-on, which should be considered a class of horrible all by itself.

"What I'd like is a hot bath, a hot meal and some me time with some quality literature, if you know what I mean," Gideon said. She wondered if her stack of magazines was still where she'd left it, or if someone had found it by now. The latter seemed more likely. It was how Gideon herself had come by them, after all. "You probably don't," she added.

Harrow's upper lip curled in disgust. Gideon realized she wanted to find out what Harrow's sneers tasted like. Clearly, this was a day for horrible thoughts.

"This is the Ninth," Harrow said. "Not a hotel."

"Is it though?" Gideon said, not about to be out-talked as well as out-muscled and out-necroed. "Because I seem to recall we kind of fucked up the universe as we knew it pretty good."

Harrow gave her a long look. Gideon looked back. Not being above dirty tricks, she experimented with a bit of smoldering, reasoning that if the object of your obsessive hatred brought you back to physical form in the body of someone they'd lusted after since the tender age of ten, you might as well take advantage.

Gideon couldn't tell if it was working, or if she just got tired of trying. Whatever. Not like she had an actual interest in smoldering at the Reverend Daughter of the Ninth, or whatever lofty title Harrow intended to claim as her reward for nearly bringing about the end of the world. (Gideon fancied 'Her Divine Highness' for herself, but was willing to consider alternatives.)

"So that's a 'no' on the possibility of a hot bath and/or meal?"

"I believe we may have graver concerns than baths and meals," said Harrow.

Gideon tried to decide whether Harrow should be awarded points for that 'graver'. "Not me. I'm back to having a body of my own, and as far as I'm concerned, that's it. I'm out."

"You only have that body thanks to me," Harrow said.

Gideon politely waited for further threats. Or actual threats.

None were forthcoming. Instead, Harrow seemed to feel she had made her point which was that Gideon should be ... grateful? Kissing Harrow's feet in gratitude for shoving her into the first available empty body?

Harrow frowned. "What I'm saying, Nav, is that you owe me. Again."

"Bullshit," Gideon said, promptly and, as far as she was concerned, accurately.

Harrow furrowed her brow some more. Gideon would have warned her about wrinkles, except that Harrow probably looked forward to having her outside match her inside. Also, occasional lapses in judgment notwithstanding, Gideon simply didn't care about Harrow's looks, or about Harrow period.

"Gideon," Harrow said. "I ... "

"You think I look hot in this body, and you want to apologize for every nasty thing you ever said or did to me, by preference by offering me whatever slightly demeaning and/or kinky sexual favors I desire?"

"I could use your help," Harrow said, not even blinking. She might be blushing, but the face paint made it impossible to tell. "Stay." A pause. "Plea-"

"All right, let me stop you there before this gets embarrassing for both of us," Gideon said. "I'm willing to consider staying, but I have conditions."

"I accept," Harrow said, which took a lot of the fun out of this whole negotiating-slash-having-Harrow-over-a-barrel-and-knowing-it thing. So probably, she should have seen that one coming.

"Better food. Improved bathing facilities. Eight hours of sleep a night."

Harrow sneered.

"Physical exercise," Gideon finished. "For both of us. Next time I get stuck in your body, I want to damn well be able to actually lift a sword and kick ass with style."

"That's hardly likely to happen," Harrow said. "I'm going to be _busy_ , Nav. You're being unreasonable."

"Take it or leave it," Gideon said. "All the same to me. Two hours of exercise, and if you want to spend the rest of your day obsessed with boners, that's entirely your business."

Harrow blinked.

"I could say I meant 'bones', but fuck it. I stand by my words. So what's it going to be? Working on getting some muscles and obsessing over my natural hotness, or spending the rest of your life bitter and alone and wishing you'd been a lot less of a bitch? I can't promise your obsession's going to get you anywhere, but I'm willing to forgive and forget and just be satisfied with thinking of ways you can make it up to me."

"You're presuming rather an awful lot, aren't you?" Harrow said.

"Presuming rather an awful lot is totally for real my middle name," Gideon said. She decided that she could get used to this, to having actual arguments with Harrow that were almost conversations, because Harrow wasn't the boss of her anymore, unless Gideon let her. Which, all right, she probably was going to do, but only for the very good reason that Harrow was probably the universe's best chance at survival.

Gideon wouldn't say she cared two hoots about the universe at large only, well, she did live in it.

"No hugs," Harrow said. As far as middle names went, that one fitted her to a T.

"Fine. We can skip from shy hand-holding and late-night snuggles right to hot and nasty sex. Why not?"

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic] Back in Black](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29246382) by [Shmaylor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shmaylor/pseuds/Shmaylor)




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